Remember Jon Morris? He’s now center of attention in Patriots HOF

FOXBORO — Before getting ready for his induction into the Patriots Hall of Fame on Saturday, Jon Morris watched on Monday and empathized for fellow center Dan Koppen.

“I had a terrible feeling when I saw that,” Morris said on Thursday. “I saw Koppen go down, and it happened to me at about the same [time]. It’s his 10th year? It happened to me in my 10th year, the second game of the year and that was it. That was my last game with the Patriots. I hope that doesn’t happen to him.”

“It was a sinking feeling when I saw that because I’ve been there.”

His own sinking feeling happened on Sept. 22, 1974 in a road game against the Giants.

But still, it’s been quite the month for the 69-year-old product of Holy Cross, which honored him earlier this month by placing him on the school’s ring of honor.

“When you’re on a roll, I don’t know what happened all of a sudden. Holy Cross has this new thing called the “Ring of Fame” where they put players’ names up on on the board so I was honored to have my name on that but yeah, it’s been a great month. I don’t know what’s next.”

Morris is the first Patriots Hall of Fame inductee to be selected by the newly formed senior selection committee. Morris will be inducted, along with Drew Bledsoe, in a ceremony at 5 p.m. ET Saturday at the Hall at Patriot Place outside Gillette – a ceremony that is free and open to the public.

Morris played 11 seasons for the Patriots, appearing in 130 games from 1964-74. He earned seven consecutive All-Star appearances with six AFL-All Star games (1964 through 1969) and was an AFC Pro Bowl center in 1970.